It's been almost three years since I lavished praise upon (of all places) Fuddruckers, home to the self-proclaimed "World's Greatest Hamburger." They earned an A in our review, as well as a word of caution, "The only question is... can they repeat this near-perfect performance next time?" Well, it's next time; and although there's still stuff to crow about (good service, great fries) tonight's visit falls way short of "Great Expectations."
Don't get me wrong: Dinner was fine, but fine doesn't get you back-to-back A's. Mistake #1 was not ordering a burger. That first burger scored an A+; but I wanted something different tonight. Fish and Chips qualifies as such; and at $8.99, it's an easy pill to swallow. My order taker (Raymond) couldn't have been nicer, or more engaging. With a fountain drink, my total came to $12.36; and I only had to wait 10 minutes for my food. So far, so good... save for the screaming baby and his/her oblivious (rude) parents. It's not Fuddruckers' fault, of course; but it does affect the atmosphere.
You get a decent amount of fries (piping hot and superbly seasoned, as always) and four small pieces of well-battered fish. Unfortunately greasy too... so much so, I left two behind (they were literally swimming in oil.) What a shame, since the two I ate were nice and flaky (albeit greasy.) It comes with cocktail sauce (don't forget to ask) but F&C is an add-on item at best, perhaps better replaced by Fudds' Crispy Fish Sandwich. At least this way, you could take advantage of Fudds' terrific fixins bar. Better yet, stay on land (and order a hamburger.)
The restaurant was clean as before; although with more people dining-in (I ate around 6 PM) you can't help but notice the tight fit all those tables produce. Once again, more loud customers... loud enough to make me wish for headphones. I found myself eating faster too... never a good sign.
This visit nets a B-, but it teaches me a valuable lesson. Choose your time carefully, and stick to what Fuddruckers does best... burgers, fries and good service. Anything else, and you might leave disappointed.
